This is why airport security needs a shakeup

Radio NZ report:

E tū union spokesperson Michael Wood, himself a former transport minister, told Nine to Noon on Tuesday privatisation would undermine safety.

“Having appropriate aviation security is one of the most safety critical things of the system, and the prospect of privatising those services does compromise them,” Wood said.

“We, alongside other unions, have real concerns about this and staff are extremely concerned about what this might mean for the safety of everyone who uses our airports.”

Around the world, almost all airport security is done by the private sector, not the Government.

The notion that changing airline security from the CAA to Airports is extremely concerning for safety is hysterical. The reality is you could abolish aviation security entirely, and 99.9999% of flights would be unaffected.

If security was privatised, Wood feared competing interests could lead to lacklustre safety measures.

“If they were airports or airlines who could deliver these services… [They] have an interest in other operational matters,” he said.

“If things are running late, that costs airlines a lot of money and that starts to bring other incentives into the system, other than the safety of ensuring everyone is appropriately screened and that process is done well.”

What Michael Wood is saying is that if airports ran airport security, then they might actually work to reduce massive queues, as it is in their interest to do so. Wow, that would be terrible.